DETROIT, Mich. — Saginaw Valley opened GLIAC play on the road at Wayne State, falling 3–0 by scores of 25–22, 25–22 and 25–22. The Cardinals hit .033 on 31 kills with 48 digs, five aces and six total blocks, while the hosts finished with 38 kills and 10 blocks.

Rachel Townsend (Oxford, Mich. / Oxford HS) led SVSU with 11 kills and seven digs, while Chloe Vanwinkle (Clio, Mich. / Clio HS) added four kills. The setting tandem combined for 27 assists—Ava Beard (Berkley, Mich. / Berkley HS) had 19 and Jackie Scheiber (Wyandotte, Mich. / Riverview Community HS) eight—Kendall White (DeWitt, Mich. / St. John's HS) paced the back row with 18 digs, and middle help came from Kendall Ihm (Owosso, Mich. / Owosso HS) and Ava Decker (Elkhart, Ind. / Elkhart HS) with three block assists each. Decker also led the team with three of their five aces.

Set one (22–25): Wayne State jumped out 6–2 before SVSU steadied and kept it within a possession late. The Cardinals fought off two set points with back-to-back kills—first from Townsend, then Ella Lochbiler (Macomb, Mich. / Dakota HS)—before the Warriors closed it out.

Set two (22–26): The Cardinals opened on a 4–1 burst capped by a Scheiber service ace, but the Warriors answered with a big blocking set and eventually led by five. SVSU surged again, trimming a late deficit with a Beard ace followed by a Townsend kill to make it 23–22, before Wayne State captured the final two points.

Set three (22–25): A tighter stanza featured five ties and four lead changes. SVSU's blocks added up with three along with back-to-back aces from Decker to give the Cardinals a 19-17 lead. The Warriors strung together a 4-0 and 3-1 run to take back the lead and eventually the match clinching set.

Up Next: Saginaw Valley volleyball continues GLIAC play on the road. The Cardinals head to No. 18 Grand Valley State on Saturday, September 20. SVSU and GVSU are set for 3:00 PM EDT from the GVSU Fieldhouse in Allendale, Mich.